President's Plan to Charge Wounded Heroes for Treatment!

When I first read this I was not sure it was correct. After extensive checking it is TRUE! I cannot believe that this bastard of a socialist so called president would stoop so low! So All you vets who voted for this scum sucker this is your payback. You now will have to pay for your service connected disability treatments. So all you vets that are missing limbs, etc get to pay this Crumb that never wore a uniform in his life and if the truth be known is not even an American Citizen. He wants us vets to ante up $540-million so he can piss it away on foreign aid and People who have been on welfare for three generations now! Next he will be cutting our pensions To the bone. Vets do not stand by and let this piece of shit get away with this. Join the Legion, the VFW, or any other vets organization to fight this outrage!

Contact: Craig Roberts of The American Legion, +1-202-263-2982 Office, +1-202-406-0887 Cell

WASHINGTON, March 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The leader of the nation's largest veterans
organization says he is "deeply disappointed and concerned" after a meeting with President
Obama today to discuss a proposal to force private insurance companies to pay for the treatment
of military veterans who have suffered service-connected disabilities and injuries. The Obama
administration recently revealed a plan to require private insurance carriers to reimburse the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in such cases.

"It became apparent during our discussion today that the President intends to move forward with
this unreasonable plan," said Commander David K. Rehbein of The American Legion. "He says he is
looking to generate $540-million by this method, but refused to hear arguments about the moral
and government-avowed obligations that would be compromised by it."

The Commander, clearly angered as he emerged from the session said, "This reimbursement plan
would be inconsistent with the mandate ' to care for him who shall have borne the battle' given
that the United States government sent members of the armed forces into harm's way, and not
private insurance companies. I say again that The American Legion does not and will not support
any plan that seeks to bill a veteran for treatment of a service connected disability at the
very agency that was created to treat the unique need of America's veterans!"

Commander Rehbein was among a group of senior officials from veterans service organizations
joining the President, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel, Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Eric Shinseki and Steven Kosiak, the overseer of defense spending at the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB). The group's early afternoon conversation at The White House was precipitated
by a letter of protest presented to the President earlier this month. The letter, co-signed by
Commander Rehbein and the heads of ten colleague organizations, read, in part, " There is
simply no logical explanation for billing a veteran's personal insurance for care that the VA
has a responsibility to provide. While we understand the fiscal difficulties this country faces
right now, placing the burden of those fiscal problems on the men and women who have already
sacrificed a great deal for this country is unconscionable."

Commander Rehbein reiterated points made last week in testimony to both House and Senate
Veterans' Affairs Committees. It was stated then that The American Legion believes that the
reimbursement plan would be inconsistent with the mandate that VA treat service-connected
injuries and disabilities given that the United States government sends members of the armed
forces into harm's way, and not private insurance companies. The proposed requirement for these
companies to reimburse the VA would not only be unfair, says the Legion, but would have an
adverse impact on service-connected disabled veterans and their families. The Legion argues
that, depending on the severity of the medical conditions involved, maximum insurance coverage
limits could be reached through treatment of the veteran's condition alone. That would leave
the rest of the family without health care benefits. The Legion also points out that many
health insurance companies require deductibles to be paid before any benefits are covered.
Additionally, the Legion is concerned that private insurance premiums would be elevated to
cover service-connected disabled veterans and their families, especially if the veterans are
self-employed or employed in small businesses unable to negotiate more favorable across-the-
board insurance policy pricing. The American Legion also believes that some employers,
especially small businesses, would be reluctant to hire veterans with service-connected
disabilities due to the negative impact their employment might have on obtaining and financing
company health care benefits.

"I got the distinct impression that the only hope of this plan not being enacted," said
Commander Rehbein, "is for an alternative plan to be developed that would generate the desired
$540-million in revenue. The American Legion has long advocated for Medicare reimbursement to
VA for the treatment of veterans. This, we believe, would more easily meet the President's
financial goal. We will present that idea in an anticipated conference call with White House
Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel in the near future.

"I only hope the administration will really listen to us then. This matter has far more serious
ramifications than the President is imagining," concluded the Commander.

SOURCE The American Legion

That's my rant for today!

Carl

Some thoughts on the bail out package.

It has been sometime since I have written anything for the Rant. I have had other irons on The fire and had to get them done.

Well, the election is over and we have our first black president. I personally do not care whatcolor his skin is as long as he can get the job done. George Bush was a complete disaster as far as I am concerned. I voted two times for him as the alternative was a complete piece of crap both times! George Bush was a good man, but it is always good men who do the most harm in the world.

Bertrand Russell in his book "The Harm That Good Men Do". Printed in 1926 says and I quote:"Among politicians good men have their uses, the chief of which is to afford a smoke-screen behind which others can carry on their activities unsuspected. A good man will never suspect his friends of shady actions: this is part of his goodness. A good man will never be suspected by the public of using his goodness to screen villains: this is part of his utility. It is clear that this combination of qualities makes a good man extremely desirable wherever a somewhat narrow-minded public objects to the transference of public funds into the hands of the deserving rich. I am told -- though far be it from me to endorse this statement -- that at a not very distant period in history there was an American President who was a good man and served this purpose". Does this remind you folks of anyone?

Now for those greedy bastards the bankers. These people are nothing but pond scum. Let's start with executive compensation. The New York state comptroller has reported that employees of the New York financial world garnered an estimated $18.4 billion in bonuses last year. This money came from the $700 billion plan that congress passed to shore up the financial Sector, one thatDrew howls of criticism about a lack of transparency. No wonder the Treasury Would not tell us Where it went. They "stole" our tax money and gave themselves bonuses and purchased executive jets with it. If anyone should have accommodations in "Gitmo" these people should! President Barack Obama issued a withering critique Thursday of Wall Street corporate behavior, calling it "the height of irresponsibility" for employees to be paid more than $18 billion in bonuses last year while their crumbling financial sector received a bailout from taxpayers. "It is shameful," Obama said from the Oval Office. "And part of what we're going to need is for the folks on Wall Street who are asking for help to show some restraint, and show some discipline, and show some sense of responsibility." He is correct in his thinking.

The bail out package is so loaded with pork that if you holler "sooeeee" it will come running. some examples are: the House included $335 million in its package for STD spending. But the Senate, not to be outdone, provided $400 million in STD spending in its bill. The Senate spending bill has $75 million for smoking cessation. Now we have to pay for people's bad habits it seems. I quit "cold turkey" so can they as far as I am concerned! The House Democrats were forced to remove a separate $200 million that had been designated to boost contraceptive coverage under Medicaid, the government-run health care plan for the poor. That provision was removed after President Obama made a personal appeal to take it out of the bill. Republicans and some Democrats have complained that the recovery bill is loaded with items that would provide little short-term help in boosting the economy.

Some of the good things in the House bill are: an estimated $544 in federal spending and $275 billion in tax cuts for individuals and businesses. I sure as hell can use a tax cut how about you?

Included is money for traditional job-creating programs such as highway construction and mass transit projects. But the measure tickets far more for unemployment benefits, health care and food stamp increases designed to aid victims of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Which is only right in my book BTW!

Tens of billions of additional dollars would go to the states, which confront the prospect of deep budget cuts of their own. That money marks an attempt to ease the recession's impact on schools and law enforcement. With funding for housing weatherization and other provisions, the bill also makes a down payment on Obama's campaign promise of creating jobs that can reduce the nation's' dependence on foreign oil.

The centerpiece tax cut calls for a $500 break for single workers and $1,000 for couples, including those who don't earn enough to owe federal income taxes. Chump change but I will take it! LOL Well we will have to see what the final bill looks like after the joint House and Senate committees meet for the final conference on the bill.

Well, its getting on to 02:28 in the morning here in California so I have to call it a night. My cats want to go to bed. Everyone be safe and keep your stick on the ice.

That's my rant for now.

Carl